|
|
Supported
by geocities.com. Click this  at
right to close sponsor's window
by George J
Thaliath
"We have enough evidence to arrest and jail you right now," said Mr. M S Meena, Crime Branch
Inspector, whose words just pierced into my heart deeply. Time: 7.20pm.. Date: 7th November 2003 Place: HQ of Economic Offence Wing of New Delhi Police Charge: connivance as a bank officer helping a business partner to cheat other partner Amount involved Rs. 1.50 crores (equallent to US $ 0.35 million)
On my right side there had been Mr. Kapoor, a former villain in a popular Hindi TV soap of 80s 'Hum Log', the petitioner. I was accompanied by Mr. Ispal, Regional Secretary of our Officers' Association, who bridged my Hindi gap at the time of interrogation. His car with driver was ready at the gate and he kept on contacting our Senior Manager and Legal Officer waiting in another car about fifty meters away, all set to meet any contingency including taking bail. They were in touch with my brother-in-law and my colleagues camped at my flat 22 kilometers away.
It was an inevitable part many bank officers have to play while working in big metro cities. We pass millions through our hands 'in good faith and without negligence'. For needy clients, we use to jump without rings also. But, no client ever tolerates a single negligence or mistake from our side. In this case I could prove my innocence during the first visit itself. I was one of the eight officers who passed hundreds of cheques signed by Mr. Kapoor during the last 40 months. The argument of Mr. Kapoor was that his signature was forged by the other partner to siphon out their investment in Garment Export business. Luckily, just one month before my leaving New Delhi, the partners joined hands by signing an MOU and all cases were withdrawn. But the shock caused by that case remained for some time.
When reached home at about 9.30pm, I was totally exhausted. My chest was aching like anything. I felt like something burning in my stomach. With a very clear family history of Heart Attack, I was always under its fear. When I was about to call the doctor nearby, a few
bank people came. They advised me to take a few antacid tablets and have a good sleep. My brother-in-law put forward another suggestion. He was planning a trip to Jaipur with his cousin and husband came from Mumbai. He compelled me to join them. The next two days were holidays. It took a few minutes for me to decide whether to go for a medical check up or go to Jaipur. Finally we decided to join the Jaipur trip. It was a long cherished plan also since reaching New Delhi in May 2001.
8 November 2003- We hired an eight seated Toyota Qualis and started our
252 km journey to Jaipur at 9 am. Children were much happy for the surprise trip. The New Delhi- Jaipur highway was broad and almost straight. There was humpty number of marble and granite quarries on both sides. State of Rajashan has been the main supplier of marble, red stones and granite to the
country and abroad. We had lunch from a roadside hotel 'Highway King'. White chairs and tables were arranged neatly on lush green lawn surrounded by beautiful garden. But, we preferred a dhaba arranged at a corner with old wooden cots and pillows. We had Alu stuffed Paratha and roti. (Alu means Potato)
At 2 pm we reached Jaipur, the Pink City, which is the capital of desert state of Rajasthan. We felt that the ancient heart of the Pink City was still beating in its fairy-tale palaces, rugged fortresses perched on barren hills and broad avenues that dot the entire city. Jaipur is situated at an altitude of 1418ft above sea level and surrounded by hills from three sides. There was a time when Rajastan was called Rajputana, which was a collection of small Rajput states. The rulers of Jaipur were Hindu Rajput kings called Kachwas, who had originally emigrated from Gwallior and Narwar in 966 AD. Kachwas had a glorious history. Their capital was Amer, a city of forts. Amer was handed over to Vijay Sigh by Bahadur Shah (Muslim Mughal Ruler) instead of crown prince Jai Sigh. Maharaja Sewai Jai Singh with help of Maharaja of Udaipur attacked Jodhpur and won Amer from Vijay Singh in 1708. After winning Amer, Maharaja Jai Singh felt the need of a bigger capital. So, on the plains adjoining the hills at Amer, a new planned city was to be built. The foundation of new city was laid in 1727, and the city was named after Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh, hence the name Jaipur.
The Maharajas of Jaipur were contemporaneous with the six great Mughal Emperors. Raja Bahar Mal was ruling Jaipur when Akber the great ascended the throne of Delhi. His daughter Jodha Bai was married to Akbar and became mother of
prince Salim, later known as Emporor Jahangir. The last Maharaja in power, Sawai Jai Singh II became the ruler of Jaipur in 1922 when he was a minor. A British controlled Minority Council supervised his education. He guided the Jaipur Durbar with skill and wisdom up to independence of India from British rule in 1947. When the new state of Rajashan with Jaipur as capital was inaugurated in 1950, the Kachwas became a matter of history. The Pancharanga flag of the thousand years old Amer Fort was replaced by Tricolour of free India.
We took three rooms in a hotel. Hotels were very costly when compared to New Delhi. But foreign tourists had a different opinion. Later I met Mr. John Moore from US who
was staying in a wonderful family run hotel, 'Meghniwas'. He said,
"Our room was furnished with antiques and looked out on the green front lawn where we could play croquet. In the back were another beautiful garden and a swimming pool, where I enjoyed swimming laps after our sightseeing. All this for less than $30, in what easily would have been an expensive bed and breakfast in the States! This was a great oasis to return to away from the hustle and chaos of the city. India can be overwhelming if you have a quiet and relaxing place to return to, you really can enjoy the vibrant culture and history that this country has to offer."
We rushed out as we had very little time left of the day and went straight to the old city originally called as Pink City. The entire city was painted pink by Maharaja Ram Singh in 1876 to welcome the Prince of Wales. The Pink colour is associated with hospitality in Rajput culture. Perhaps the earliest of modern planned cities, Jaipur is encircled by a formidable wall. A young Bengali architect, Vidyadhar Bhattacharya had formalised the city's plans in a grid system. The wide straight avenues, roads, streets, lanes and uniform rows of shops on either side of main markets were arranged in nine rectangular city sectors (Chokris), in accordance with the principles of town planning set down in the 'Vastu Shastra' - an epochal treatise on the Hindu architecture. It is also believed that the nine Chokris are symbol of the nine treasures of Kuber, the God of wealth. The original blue prints of the city of Jaipur are still preserved.
We were welcomed to old pink city by Hawa Mahal, Palace of Wind, built in 1799 by Maharaja Pratap Singh, which is the most recognisable monument of Jaipur. The five-storied stunning semi-octagonal monument having 152 windows with overhanging latticed balconies is a fine piece of Rajput architecture. It was originally designed for the royal ladies to catch the cool breeze on a hot day and enjoy the processions and other activities on the street below from behind jharokas. Inside the market, all shops were painted pink, with pink interiors and furniture. There was not even a single neon or plastic signboard. Name boards of all shops were identical white walls with black letters. I had an impression that the entire city was built with pink stones. In fact, there is no natural pink sandstone and pink colour has been painted over white sand stones. The
streets were lined with men in turbans, women with big nose rings wearing bright orange and red flowing sarees and carts being pulled by camels. If it weren't for the cars and buses we could swear that we were back in the times of Rajput.
 At 4.30pm we reached Birla Temple, the marvelous Lakshmi Narayan Temple constructed with pure white marble. It was one of the new buildings in
Jaipur, but built in old style. A black granite plaque revealed that it was completed on 22nd February, 1985 under the devotional aspiration of Brij Mohan Birla and Rukmani Devi Birla and built by Hindustan Charity Trust. Birlas are one of the biggest business houses of India. Maharaja Jai Singh, founder of Jaipur never underestimated the role of religious places in the social life of a community. For this reason, one comes across small temples all over Jaipur, on either side of the market, near the crossing etc. The temples of Jaipur are different architecturally because of their standing arches, tapering pillars and wall carvings. But, Birla temple stands in a class of its own with its special design and sculptures. There were hundreds of sculptures around the temple depicting saints of various religions. We were stunned to notice sculptures of Adam, Moses, Jesus and St. Mary among them. Probably one might not see this in any other Hindu temple in India.
  
After 20 minutes travel, we reached Chokhi Dhani, an ethnic village resort with a blend of rustic environment and modern amenities making it an important destination in Pink City. Besides five star facilities, Chokhi Dhani
had 31 Village Huts, 34 Executive Huts and a Shekhawati Haveli with 8 royal suites. Evenings at Chokhi Dhani
were very special. We were welcomed by a woman in traditional Rajasthani dress at the entrance by marking sindhoor (red powder) with rice on our forehead. A man wearing huge Rajashani turban (headgear) served sweets. It was great experience inside participating a grand village fair carefully recreated on the sprawling ground. Puppet shows, village magic, folk dancers, country singers were everywhere. Children enjoyed elephant and camel rides. Folk dancers and musicians invited us to join them. We hired their huge turbans and danced with the folk dancers.
For our surprise we met a four member gang from New Delhi, all working in our Bank and members of so called
ADCB (Association of Delhi Compelled Bachelors). Its members came from various parts of India who could not bring their families. They really enjoy the three or four years they spend in Delhi with
parties and trips to all possible places around Delhi. While the fair went on, tangy and mouth-watering snacks were served
together with a special saurish herbal soup in mud cups. At 9 a truly sumptuous and traditional Rajasthani Meal was served in the typical style of Manuhaar. While waiters in the traditional village garbed bustle about, aroma of cooking from the in situ kitchen wafted in the air. We returned to our hotel at 10.45pm.
We started very early on the next day for we had a lot left in Jaipur. Our first visit was to Jantar Mantar (Astronomical Observatory). Built in 18th century by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh, the huge masonry instruments were used to study the movement of constellations and stars in the sky. Enormous sundials still provide accurate time, which are subject to daily corrections. The astronomy is medieval, and makes no distinction between astronomy and astrology, yet the instruments are very inventive and very accurate. It looks a lot like a school playground. In New Delhi we had visited a similar Jantar Mantar in the middle of city. But, the one in Jaipur is the mother of all observatories.
I explored each and every instrument with children while others took rest under the shade. First one was Laghu Samrat Yantra (Simple
Sundial- see picture on right side). The white arc
determined the time, which was Jaipur local time. Before standard time, each town had its own time, which was completely accurate, though out of step with other
places. Indian Standard Time, by the way, varies from Greenwich Mean Time by
5 and 1/2 hours; Nepali time differs from Indian Standard time by 15 minutes and so on. Next to it was a small instrument called Dhruva Darshak Yantra, and
was used to measure the position of the pole star. Yantra Raj was a multi-function instrument, with fine engravings of longitudes, latitudes and planets.
It was used to track planetary position and rotation speeds which would determine the dates of eclipses.
The other instruments were Nadivalaya Yantra, follows the passage of the sun between the northern and southern hemispheres; Rasivalaya Yantra, which correspond to the signs of the zodiac; Jai Prakash Yantra, tells the time, measures the coordinates of celestial bodies, and among other things, the zodiac symbol of the day; Kranti Writa Yantra, measures celestial latitude and longitude; Ram Yantra, used for finding out the azimuth and attitude of the sun, moon or stars; Chakra Yantra, to find out the Meridian Pass Time and the declination of a particular planet.
Coming out of Jantar Mantar we were at Hathi Pol, the entrance to City Palace, the former royal residence built in a blend of the Rajasthani and Mughal styles. From Sawai Jai Singh to the last of the Maharajas held their royal court in this palace. The carved arches were supported by gray-white marble columns ornate with floral motifs in gold and colored stones. Two carved elephants in white marble guard the entrance. The retainers whose families have served generations of rulers serve as guides. One of them explained that the family of present Maharaja Brig.(Retd) Bhavani Singh was still residing inside City Palace in a palace called Chandra Mahal. We saw his official car outside with official coat of armour of the Maharaja of Jaipur. The Maharajas no longer hold political power nor receive
any government stipend. Many of them turned their great palaces into heritage hotels and earn good money.
The City Palace complex is a huge structure consisting of several palaces. It forms a single facade overlooking the Pichola Lake. Built by successive kings, the additions so carefully planned, that it is difficult to believe it was not conceived as one. The whole building is in soft cream colour and its massive towers crowned with cupolas.The Sheesh Mahal with inlaid mirror work, the Krishna Vilas with rows of scenes of various themes painted in miniature style, the blue & white Chinese and Dutch tiles of Chini Chitrashala, the scenes from the Radha-Krishna stories painted on the walls of the Bhim Vilas, the intricately crafted peacocks in fine mosaic relief on the walls of Mor Chowk of Priyatama Vilas, the beautifully laid out gardens and fountains of Garden Palace-Bada Mahal and the beautifully constructed Zanana Mahal were all worth viewing. The peacock gate which lead to Priyatama Vilas was a wonderful piece of Art. There were four gates representing four seasons.
Just after we took a photo in front of the peacock gate, both children were missing. We found them upon the large
cannons exhibited enjoying firing each other. A large portion of the City Palace was occupied by a museum with a superb collection of Rajasthani costumes and armory of Mughals and Rajputs including swords of different shapes and sizes with chased handles, some of them inlaid with enamel and embellished with jewels and encased in magnificent scabbards. A stunning piece there was a cotton padded brocade over the garments of Sawai Madho Singh. This Maharaja was supposed to be over 7 ft tall and weighed over 600 lbs. Another attraction was the priceless dresses which Sawai Pratap Singh wore for his several weddings.
The palace also had an art gallery with an excellent collection of miniature paintings, carpets, royal paraphernalia and rare astronomical works in Arabic, Persian, Latin and Sanskrit, acquired by Sawai Jai Singh - II to study astronomy in detail. There were a number of shops selling handicrafts, garments and other things to the visitors. The Kundan jewelry and Blue Pottery of Jaipur were world renowned. Jolly, my wife was interested in hand block printed Sanganeri and Bangru cotton fabrics. She bought a wooden block and practiced fabric printing from the vendor.Among other things, we purchased two camels made of camel leather, an ideal souvenir for the desert state of Rajastan.
We went to Jal Mahal (Water Palace), at a distance of 7 kms from Jaipur city on Amber road. Situated in the middle of a lake known as Man Sagar, it was built by Maharaja Pratap Singh. As the monsoons hadn't come to Rajasthan for four years at that time, and unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of water around the Water Palace. We were able to watch the palace from the road only since there was no ferry to palace. Here the rulers of Jaipur spent their summer months to resist the scorching heat. It was used as a hunting box also.
For our surprise we found a Kerala hotel just opposite Jal Mahal. It was 2pm and all were hungry. We had a typical Kerala meals with boiled rice, Sambar, Avial, Rasam and Pappadam- all the good tastes of Kerala, our home state at the southern end of India. We were lucky that they had prepared special Kerala food for a group of Karalites came by conducted tour. And the same turned out to be our grand lunch with a touch of Nostalgia; far better than the fat-rich supper we had at Chokhi Dhani.
We visited Amber (also called as Amer), which is situated 11kms from Jaipur on the Jaipur-Delhi road. Amber, the old capital of Dhundhar or the erstwhile Jaipur state, was originally a stronghold of Meena tribals and the Kachawa Rajputs conquered it and made it their capital. The founding royalty of Amer can be traced back its history to 1000 years. Amber is situated in a gorge of the Kalikho hills. The old city of Amber sprawls beneath the palace surrounded by embattled walls crowned with watch towers. Once a settlement of nobles, craftsmen and common folk, the city of Amer
is in ruins now. Rajputs were known as fighter clan and they had always to be prepared for wars. That is the reason why many forts were constructed on hills around Jaipur. Raghunath Garh in the east, Shankar Garh and Hathroi in the south, Sudersan Garh in west and Amer and Jaigarh in the east are the main forts.
Though the city of Amer dates from 966 AD, construction of the Amer fort palace was begun in 1562. The Amber palace and fort, perched on top of a hill, are great examples of Rajput architecture. Upto Jai Pol, the first gateway, one can ride on elephant back. We saw many elephants with colourful decorations carrying tourists through a separate elephant way. But we preferred to go by our vehicle through a lengthy road with hairpin curves. Jaipur perhaps is the only place in India where people from all over the world come to play elephant polo. Even
Prince Charles and his father Duke of Edinburgh had come and enjoyed playing polo in Jaipur.
On entering Jai Pol, we reached a huge courtyard. To the left was the Diwan - I - Aam or the Hall of Public Audience. Made of grey marble, it was an unusual building open on three sides. It had 40 sandstone pillars supporting a vaulted roof. The pillars were shaped like elephants. On the south side, the Ganesh Pol led us to the inner palace. Ganesh Pol was a beautiful gateway, covered with paintings, built during the time of Sawai Jai Singh. The gallery above the gate with latticework windows was designed so that the women folk could view the activities below yet remains unseen. The corridors to the left and right of the gate lead to the inner chambers, supported by carved pillars and walls having beautiful paintings.
We walked ahead and reached the older part of the palace built by Maharaja Man Singh I. Towards the right was Sukh Niwas, which had paintings in turquoise and trellis designs. It had a channel for running water in the center, which flew through the portico to combat the desert heat. The Maharajas certainly knew how to live! The inner rooms had wooden doors inlaid with ivory. The Diwan - I - Khas opposite Sukh Niwas, had floral relief work and carvings of insects. The ceiling had exquisite inlaid mirror work. The mirror work motifs in the inner room were so delicately designed that a single lit matchstick gives an impression of a starlit sky. Jas Mahal had beautiful inlay work and tempera designs and the terrace beyond it was an open-air theatre called Nat Mahal. To the left of the staircase, as we left the palace was the Kali Temple, famous for its solid silver doors. It was dedicated to Kali (Durga) and was made of black stone. It was also known as Sila Devi Temple and the idol was brought from Bengal. It was believed that once upon a time Nara Bali (Human Sacrifice) was offered in that temple.
After coming out of Amber Fort, we climbed another hill to enter another fort called Jaigarh Fort. It was older than the Amber Palace complex. It was situated on a higher hill to the south of the Palace overlooking it. Jaigarh was one of the few military structures of medieval India, retaining its ancient splendor in palaces, gardens, reservoirs, a granary, an armory, a well planned cannon foundry, several temples and a tall tower. We had a special aim to reach that tall hill through difficult road. The 'Jai Ban', world's largest mounted cannon, having twenty feet long barrel and wheels of nine feet in diameter. For a single shot from the cannon 100
kg gunpowder had to be pumped in. The fort was famous for the gun
foundry also, where we came across the huge gunshots used in Jai Ban, might be
world's biggest cannon balls.
It was getting late. We returned to hotel, packed up and began our return trip. Next to the hotel, there was another wonder, Raj Mandir Cinema, the biggest cinema theater in Asia. We were short of time. Otherwise we would have definitely arranged a
two days camel trip to the real desert, which would have been a unique experience. Any trip to Rajasthan would not complete without having a ride through the amazing desert. As we left the Pink City, we saw the setting sun in the sky with vivid colours above the magnificent Amber Fort.
Page
designed and created by George J Thaliath June
2005
|